Note in Boat That Hid Boston Suspect

Wendy Bounds and Devlin Barrett discuss a note left by Boston bombing suspect Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, and Ron Winslow looks at new data on experimental drugs that enlist the immune system against cancer. Photo: AP.

Boston Marathon bombing suspect
Dzhokhar Tsarnaev
scrawled a message inside the boat where he was found hiding from police, claiming he and his brother acted in retribution for U.S. attacks on Muslims, a U.S. law-enforcement official briefed on the matter said Thursday.

The message was found on the inside of the bullet-ridden hull of the boat, the official said, adding that it appeared to be written in pen or with an object found in the craft, which was parked in a Watertown, Mass., backyard.

The message mirrored statements Mr. Tsarnaev made to Federal Bureau of Investigation interviewers who questioned him during the weekend following the April 15 bombing, the official said. At the time, Mr. Tsarnaev said he and his brother were acting as jihadists motivated by Muslim religious anger at the U.S. FBI agents questioned him sporadically in a hospital bed as he was treated for gunshot wounds sustained in a shootout with police. His older brother, Tamerlan, was killed during a confrontation with police three days after the bombings. CBS News reported on the note Thursday morning.

An attorney for Mr. Tsarnaev didn't return messages seeking comment. Mr. Tsarnaev has yet to offer a plea in court to the government's criminal charges.

Separately, FBI Director
Robert Mueller
said Thursday, testifying before a Senate committee, that as a result of the Boston case, counterterrorism investigators would be more active when notified of potential terror suspects traveling overseas.

Tamerlan Tsarnaev's name had been placed in a database that notified a federal agent in Boston when he was about to leave for Russia. Another automatic notification was issued when he returned to the U.S. in July 2012. In neither instance was any further action taken, apparently because the FBI had investigated Tamerlan a year earlier at the request of Russian authorities and found nothing suspicious.

Mr. Mueller said investigators would "do better" and follow up on such notices in the future. The director praised the agents on the Boston joint terrorism task force who handled the Tsarnaev matter before the bombing, indicating he wasn't trying to cast personal blame.

Related

He said it was possible the task force didn't follow up on the notices because they deal with hundreds of such issues ever year. Mr. Mueller said the agency was now reviewing how it handles such notifications, to determine what further actions it can take to find out more about such travel.

Authorities say the Tsarnaev brothers are seen on video and photo images near the finish line depositing bomb-laden backpacks that then detonated, killing three people and injuring more than 260. The attacks set off a manhunt for suspects, culminating in the release three days later of images of the two suspects.

Later that night, police say, the two men set off with about a half-dozen other homemade bombs, and killed a police officer in a failed attempt to steal his gun. That led to a police shootout in which Tamerlan Tsarnaev suffered fatal injuries and Dzhokhar was badly wounded. He was captured the following night hiding in a boat being stored in a yard.

Counterterrorism officials have said that while the younger brother has claimed the pair were inspired by jihadist sentiment, they believe the older brother was the driving force in the plot, and that without his direction, Dzhokhar probably wouldn't have committed any violent acts on his own.

Officials say that even with Dzhokhar's claims, investigators believe Dzhokhar's move toward extremism came very late, if at all, and that the motives he is claiming are principally his brother's.

Friends have said Dzhokhar seemed to genuinely enjoy his life in America and displayed no signs of holding extremist views.

Two Kazakhstan nationals,
Dias Kadyrbayev
and Azamat Tazhayakov, have been charged with conspiring to obstruct justice for allegedly helping Dzhokhar conceal evidence. The two haven't been accused of aiding in the bombing. They haven't entered pleas.

Amir Ismagulov,
Mr. Tazhayakov's father, said that his son has said in conversations since the bombing that Dzhokhar was a "100% Americanized kid." In an interview Thursday, Mr. Ismagulov said his son wasn't close to Dzhokhar, getting to know him six months ago through Mr. Kadyrbayev.

Mr. Ismagulov, who traveled to Boston after his son was detained, said he had never heard about Dzhokhar from his son before Dzhokhar was identified as a suspect in the bombing.

This copy is for your personal, non-commercial use only. Distribution and use of this material are governed by our Subscriber Agreement and by copyright law. For non-personal use or to order multiple copies, please contact Dow Jones Reprints at 1-800-843-0008 or visit www.djreprints.com.